


Healing

by manubibi



Category: orange - 高野苺 | Takano Ichigo
Genre: F/M, Introspection, Melancholy, Missing Scene, No Plot/Plotless
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-26
Updated: 2016-09-26
Packaged: 2018-08-17 11:25:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 425
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8142044
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/manubibi/pseuds/manubibi
Summary: Slowly, she healed. Not completely. Not enough to make him think she was alright.But she stopped looking upset every time he or anyone else mentioned Kakeru. She stopped asking to be alone whenever old memories were being talked about. She accepted Suwa more openly, and not as a way to stop thinking of Kakeru. She accepted Suwa because he's Suwa, not a distraction or a way to fit in.Very short ficlet about how Suwa and Naho sort of tried to move on Kakeru's death. Not about the main universe.The title sucks because I majorly suck at titles.





	

Slowly, she healed. Not completely. Not enough to make him think she was alright.  
But she stopped looking upset every time he or anyone else mentioned Kakeru. She stopped asking to be alone whenever old memories were being talked about. She accepted Suwa more openly, and not as a way to stop thinking of Kakeru. She accepted Suwa because he's Suwa, not a distraction or a way to fit in.  
And he waited for her. He always would. He waited, and listened to her words whenever she spoke about loss. He silently stood on the sidelines, watching over her, treasuring her shy attempts at fixing her own heart. She never managed, but she found a way to make it work anyway. One always does, after all. Life goes on.  
But sometimes, Kakeru would just pop up somehow, and it made Suwa's heart clench. Not because of jealousy, but because that was his friend too. Someone he'd cheered on. Someone he'd failed to save. What if he'd paid more attention? What if he'd told Kakeru that it was okay to open up and cry? What good would it do to keep it all inside?  
And at the same time, a child came their way. They could not hold onto a piece of the past forever, they had to keep on living and build something different from what they'd planned. Maybe it would turn out being worth it, and maybe they would simply think of Kakeru as someone who was their dear friend once and wasn't there anymore.  
And Naho, she healed. Mostly. Chaotic life rhythms, their child, parents and friends and work and hobbies, they all filled her up with other things to think about, but Suwa still saw it. A part of her that would never be his, a melancholia that he would never get to cure. That was a sadness that his love would never turn into joy. But somehow, it is alright. As long as they are alive, it is going to work out, somehow. For better or for worse, it has to.  
Plus, somewhere in another universe, someone that is also them maybe is having another shot at saving Kakeru and change their lives. Suwa looks over at Naho, napping against him on the sofa. Who knows, maybe somewhere in another place he has someone else, and Naho is happy in some way he could never make her be. A little smile tugs at his lips, before a child's wail interrupts his thoughts. Real life called him back demanding his attention, again.

**Author's Note:**

> Tbh I'm not even that much into this anime but I was scrolling through prompts for a challenge and there was this Orange prompt that was the only Orange prompt around and I was like, "hey I know this fandom!" and it so happens that I really love Suwa and have a soft spot for him and I sort of ship him with Naho EXACTLY because their relationship is always going to miss something. Naho will always be in love with Kakeru. And like, yeah. It just makes me so melancholic and I love feeling melancholic. I guess that's it. I might have gotten stuff wrong bc I didn't read the manga and I didn't care THAT much for the anime but I just- I appreciate it. I didn't care much for small details. Honestly though I don't care that much about the main plotline where they save Kakeru. I care more for exactly this, for Naho moving on with Suwa and learning to handle her pain and regrets.


End file.
